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Medal of Honor Citation: "For conspicuous devotion to duty, extraordinary courage and complete disregard of his own life, during the attack on the Fleet in Pearl Harbor T.H., by Japanese forces on 7 December 1941. As commanding officer of the U.S.S. Arizona, Capt. Van Valkenburgh gallantly fought his ship until the U.S.S. Arizona blew up from magazine explosions and a direct bomb hit on the bridge which resulted in the loss of his life."

Death at Pearl Harbor

07 Dec 1941
—Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

Van Valkenburg was the captain of the USS Arizona when it exploded during the attack at Pearl Harbor. He was in his cabin when the attack began and moved to the bridge, giving orders and refusing to move somewhere safer. The Arizona was bombed by the Japanese multiple times, and finally its forward magazines exploded. The resulting fire swept through the bridge, killing Van Valkenburgh. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.